The 150th running of the Preakness Stakes features a nine-horse field led by Journalism (8-5). After closing as the favorite but finishing second to Sovereignty in the Kentucky Derby, Journalism races Saturday seeking redemption. Sovereignty will not run Saturday in the Preakness electing to recover from the Derby and next race in three weeks in the Belmont Stakes.
Journalism will break from the No. 2 post Saturday evening on NBC, in the $2 million second leg of the Triple Crown.
Sandman (4-1) and American Promise (15-1) join Journalism as the only horses entered in The Preakness who also ran in the Kentucky Derby. Sandman finished seventh in the Run for the Roses while American Promise contended early but faded late to finish sixteenth.
Clever Again (5-1) is the third favorite. Sired by American Pharoah, the Steven M. Asmussen-trained colt is a betting favorite despite being lightly raced to this point in his career.
Let’s run through the field according to their post position and then welcome in NBC Horse Racing Analysts Al Bernstein (@AlBernstein) and Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper) with their plays for the race which is slated to go off at 7:01P Eastern.
2025 Preakness Stakes Full Field and Post Positions
- Sire: Not This Time
- Jockey: Flavien Prat | Trainer: Bob Baffert
- Career Highlight: Won an allowance optional
claiming race May 3 at Churchill Downs - Fun Fact: Baffert has won the Preakness a record
eight times. Goal Oriented has run two races...
and won both. This race, however, is a major step
up in class for the young colt.
- Sire: Curlin
- Jockey: Umberto Rispoli | Trainer: Michael W. McCarthy
- Career Highlight: Won the Santa Anita Derby.
Finished 2nd in the Kentucky Derby - Fun Fact: McCarthy has trained one Triple Crown race
winner, 2021 Preakness Stakes Rombauer. Rispoli has
yet to win a Triple Crown race.
- Sire: Justify
- Jockey: Nik Juarez | Trainer: D. Wayne Lukas
- Career Highlight: Faded late and finished 16th
in the Kentucky Derby - Fun Fact: Trainer D. Wayne Lukas has won the
Preakness seven times. His first came with Codex
in 1980. His most recent was with Seize the
Grey last year.
- Sire: Honor A.P.
- Jockey: Saffie Osborne | Trainer: Jamie A. Osborne
- Career Highlight: Finished 2nd behind Admire Daytona
at the UAE Derby in his last race on April 5 - Fun Fact: Without question the most international horse
in the field. Heart of Honor’s parents are from Kentucky
and Chile. He was trained outside of London, sold in
France, and earned his stripes racing in Dubai.
- Sire: Improbable
- Jockey: Raul Mena | Trainer: Michael E. Gorham
- Career Highlight: Won the Federico Tesio at Laurel
Park on April 19 to earn a spot in the Preakness - Fun Fact: This is the first Preakness for Gorham as
well as Pay Billy’s ownership group.
- Sire: Maclean’s Music
- Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr. | Trainer: Todd A. Pletcher
- Career Highlight: Finished 2nd to Sovereignty
in the Fountain of Youth Stakes - Fun Fact: Todd Pletcher is 0-10 all-time in the Preakness
2025 Preakness Stakes: Expert Picks
Expert handicapper Al Bernstein (@AlBernstein) offers bettors and race enthusiasts the following breakdown of the 150th Preakness Stakes:
This Preakness presents a fascinating handicapping puzzle. By most parameters, Journalism was the fastest and best horse going into the Kentucky Derby, and he did everything right, but Sovereignty was better on that day and probably liked the wet track more. Journalism should run well in the Preakness, but there remains a question of how much the Derby took out of him. Also, Sandman was a “buzz” horse going into the Derby, but I didn’t see much in his performance to say that he would run better two weeks later.
For the Preakness, I am looking at the newcomers to the Triple Crown trail for a winner. Clever Again, Goal Oriented and River Thames all have potential to improve here. Clever Again was very impressive at Oaklawn in the Hot Springs Stakes, and as a son of American Pharoah, he should have no problem with the distance. The allowance race win by Goal Oriented at Churchill on Derby Day was tremendous, and he’s undefeated in two starts with a license to get better. And as impressive as Sovereignty was in the Derby, we shouldn’t forget that the horse that finished a neck behind him in the Fountain of Youth Stakes was River Thames. It’s tough to separate these horses, but here it is:
1st: Clever Again
2nd: Goal Oriented
3rd: Journalism
4th: River Thames
Read More: Al Bernstein takes a deeper dive into the 150th Preakness Stakes
NBC Sports horse racing and betting expert Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper) also sees The Preakness favoring fresh legs:
“The Preakness looks relatively wide open with the Derby winner Sovereignty electing to skip the race and point toward the Belmont, while the Derby favorite Journalism takes on several newcomers with fresh legs in the Triple Crown sprint. Expecting the early pace to be fast and set by the Baffert-runner Goal Oriented, the key question is whether he can hang on and go wire to wire like several of Bob’s wins in the last ten years. Despite the relative inexperience and huge step in class for Goal Oriented, I’m a believer at this price that he is the best bet on the board.”
After this year’s race, the Pimlico racetrack and complex will close its doors for an overdue facelift. As a result, the longtime home of The Preakness will not host the second jewel of horse racing’s Triple Crown in 2026. The race is expected to run at Laurel Park between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. next year and possibly in 2027 pending the construction at Pimlico.
Enjoy the race.
